Astonishing X Men: Beloved
by Proudly Pinoy
Summary: Sequel to THE SOUL'S END! The mansion is in ruins,and the Stepford Cuckoos have been consumed by the Phoenix! Can the XMen stop the psychic trinity that these insanely powerful forces have turned into? Chapter 4, up!
1. Chapter 1

**Previously on… **

**The Astonishing X-Men are a team of mutants who have dedicated their lives to protecting a world that hates and fears them. Led by Scott Summers, AKA CYCLOPS, and EMMA FROST, the X-Men have overcome threats not only to their race, but to the entire universe as well. Nonetheless, at their core, the X-Men are still teachers, mentors to thousands of children who wake up to find their world turned upside-down and inside-out. And in order to locate these children, the X-Men have under their use a small, helmet, CEREBRA, which increases telepathic awareness to near omniscient level. **

**Three night ago, a splinter cell born from the Government faction which fought off against Hitler's supernatural division, who called themselves the RING OF FATIMA, have come to the decision that world peace could only be achieved by sheer force of will. And that a device which could alter minds on a global scale wouldn't hurt either. That's why one of the Ring's members, LILAH GRAHAM, hatched an intricate plot which saw the X-Men out of the country, and their home utterly defenseless. Or so she thought. **

**The NEW X-MEN. Students who have learned the use and control of their uncanny powers under the best. Left alone, and with an entire army at their gates who want to take capture Cerebra, they do the only thing that the world has ever taught them to do. They fight back. With the STEPFORD CUCKOOS on the helm of Cerebra, it would seem that they could easily push the threat in the campus back. That was until Lilah Graham used her telepathy to heighten the violent urges of the students who didn't agree with the majority that Cerebra should not be used in order to force world peace. A riot broke out. Twelve students died, and much, much more were critically wounded. But more than that, the PHOENIX FORCE, which was hiding in MINDEE, one of the Stepford Cuckoos all along, re-emerged to devastating effect. Still, the small team led by Julian Keller, AKA HELLION, and Mark Vasquez, manage to beat Lilah and her soldiers. The X-Men finally come home to find the school in ruins, and the three sisters, who are now apparently hosts to the Phoenix, have disappeared… **

* * *

**Astonishing X-Men: "Beloved"**

* * *

**Prologue:

* * *

**

Two months ago. It was a long day, made even longer by the most recent resurrection of Jean Grey, and the additional agitation posed by the reconstitution of an Omega-level student. Both of them came back looking for love. And in the end, it was love that ended the threat of their existence as well. At least that was what everybody thought. Nightfall came, and with it, a few hours rest for three beautiful, identical sisters. The Stepford Cuckoos. Celeste and Phoebe were already asleep, exhausted from backing up the X-Men earlier that day when they fought back the Phoenix. Mindee on the other hand only kept her eyes closed. Something was preventing her from sleeping that evening. A distant fire. A fire as cold as ice. "…snap out of it…" she muttered to no one in particular, shifting to her body to the side facing the window. A few moments after emptying her mind, she thought she could finally rest. That was, until her eyelids forced themselves back open. And the first thing she saw was a great fire. She immediately sat up, remarkably calm at the sight of the raptor, which was only one thin pane of glass away. "Oh…it's you." murmured Mindee, as the image if the Phoenix reflected on her snow-white eyes. "What took you so long?" she then asked, before standing up and opening the window.

* * *

One month ago. Mindee tilted her head as she watched the pencil's lead slide against her notebook's empty page. By then, she had already forgotten about the dream she had with the Phoenix Force. Her sisters were in different classes from hers at that time, which was the only sure proof way to separate them. Together, they were the Three-in-One. Divided, they were just four smart, and extremely beautiful blondes. The professor, a balding, middle-aged man in a plaid suit that reminded her of dead grass, went on about the specifications of the class' final project. Meta-human Genders. His voice wasn't at all deep, a characteristic which betrayed his large frame and imposing figure. He was talking about love. Not that Mindee felt it in her to listen. The seat in front of her was empty. It was the seat of the student she had been crushing on since the beginning of the term. His best friend had just died two days before. It was probably the reason he was absent as well. She missed them both.

"Okay then. Now, before anything else, do you all remember the assignment we have for today?" asked their professor, as he took out a small, black organizer from his bag. His question quickly snapped Mindee out of her trance, as every student other than herself began to look for something in their bags.

"Wait, what?" Mindee turned to her seatmate, a blue-skinned boy who was busy rummaging through his bag. "What assignment?" she asked again, though getting no answer. She had half the mind to pry it out of his brain, but the telepathic line that the headmistress installed to prevent any psychics from cheating during class hours kept her at bay. And now her perfect CGPA would suffer for it.

"Mindee?" the professor called, lowering his glasses with a suspicious stare.

"I…I'm sorry sir, but I wasn't aware that there's homework…" stammered the beautiful blonde.

"…huh…well, perhaps there is a first time for everything." the old man then stated jokingly, before turning to another student in the class. "Well then, Dallas, perhaps you can show your classmate what she has forgotten today…"

"Yes sir." the brown haired-boy politely responded, before standing up with his bag. With a goofy grin, he crossed the three tables that bridged the gap between Mindee and himself. The professor looked out the door and nodded at someone from the corridor, signaling him in.

"Here you go." Dallas whispered, taking out a single, long-stemmed rose from inside his bag. A look of confusion was clear in Mindee's face, as she was handed the rose. Ten other students then stood up, each one taking a rose out of their bags, and handing it to the young woman one after another. "What is this?" Mindee asked, unable to hide a wide smile.

"It's called a surprise." whispered a handsome young man from the doorway.

"Mark?" Mindee was barely able to sound off his name as she slowly got up from her desk. With a smile as big as hers, Mark Vasquez rubbed the back of his shaved head, stepping into the room and slowly making his way to Mindee.

"What is this?" she asked again, blushing as a thousand thoughts raced into her head.

"…just thought I'd tell you how special you are." whispered the young man, pulling out a pristine, white rose, and he gently placing it in Mindee's hand. "You really helped me out through a rough patch." He then explained, referring to the recent death of his best friend. "I guess it's just now that I noticed how you were always there for me…and now, if you'' let me…":Mark took Mindee's hand. "I'll always be here for you too."

* * *

Two nights ago. "_I'll always be here for you too."_ A bolt of thunder crackled over head. Mindee screamed as the riotous students stormed Cerebra. The telepaths on hover discs pleaded to be let go, only to be pushed off the edges of the platforms they stood on. "Crowd control!" Phoebe shouted, as she attempted to reconnect the Three-in-One's mind in order to neutralize the threat at hand. A powerful blast of concentrated photons put a halt to her plan. Celeste called after her, only to receive a savage, clubbing blow to the back of her head from another of the frenzied students. Another pair of strong hands then grabbed her from behind, not hesitating to cop a feel as he did. Mindee attempted to pull the young man off of Celeste, when she felt someone behind clutch her hair. "Teacher's pet!" one of the students shouted, before the person who grabbed a hold of her pulled down hard, slamming her to the bridge's floor with a loud crack. A pile of boots followed her down, as the rampaging students brutally stomped on her thin frame, keeping her on the ground. And as the pain surged through her body, a sudden numbness overwhelmed her entire being. A feeling of dead cold. "_Mark?" _she desperately thought as a frightening darkness overcame her. "_No." _responded a woman. "_It's me." _And just like that, a brilliant flare broke through the pitch black void.

"…_stop…I'm waiting for someone else…" _protested the young woman, as she felt conflagrated tendrils reach out and pull her. "_He said he'll always be here for me…"_

"_I know. He said that to me too…or don't you remember? The reason why I came to you…" _

"_That was a dream! You do not belong here!" _Mindee argued, trying her best to fight the fire off.

"_It is time." _the voice then proclaimed, as the fire consumed the young woman. Back in reality, Mindee's eyes snapped open, and even though she tasted her own blood against her cracked lip, and felt it stream down the top of her forehead, she did not feel any pain. "_It is time."

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_

**Chapter 1: "In the Mourning"

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**

Seven o' clock. The sun was already so high, it was practically raining sunlight. The birds tapping on the window seemed to enjoy it though, trying to make a nest from the ledge, instead of the numerous tree branches that tried to shield the room from the sun's bright glare. They should be thankful enough, that the windows do not open outwards, or else their new house would suffer a sudden fall. Beneath those windows were the feet of the occupant's bed. Seven o' one. And he hasn't blinked a second's worth of sleep for all the six hours that he spent lying down. He didn't like where his dreams took him anymore. He hated seeing the fire. Though it should be noted that he did not need to dream to be in a nightmare.

"Something the matter?" teasingly asked the young, blonde woman who sat at his bed's edge.

"…" Mark rubbed his forearm against his eyes, in an attempt to shut out the memory of the girl he lost. It was the story of his life after all. Maybe it was his secondary mutation, even. To lose the people he cared for most. "Christ…" he mumbled to himself, before groggily sitting up, flinching at the sudden glare of light that came his way. "….fucking sunlight…" he then whispered, as he wearily scratched the back of his head. At the rate that his black hair grew, he was shaving with an electric razor every two weeks. With the weather a shot as it is, having one's hair not more than an inch's length was a blessing. Seven o' five. Mark sat at the edge of his bed, his bare back now facing the sunlight.

"…good morning." he muttered, though his voice was no louder than a rattling leaf. Every day before three mornings ago, the young woman will always come into his mind and return the greeting, also giving him a telepathic kiss on the cheek to go along with it. It made getting out of bed all the more easier. "…_no one's going to answer you anymore, you stupid fuck." _came a bitter thought, as Mark finally found the strength to stand. His roommate was still asleep. Not that they ever talked.

With as much determination as a zombie, Mark shuffled his way to the closet in order to grab what he needed for the shower. By then, he and his girlfriend were supposed to be staging a mock argument about her not looking while he cleaned himself. Mark grabbed the knob to the closet door, but stopped before he could turn it. "_Okay, I won't peek…" _She was supposed to say those words to him by the time he opened his closet door. Every time. "…" The silence was deafening. "_Snap out of it!" _he urged himself, pulling the door open and grabbing a towel from inside. "_She's gone. She's…she's gone…"

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_

**Headmaster's Sleeping Quarters/07:08

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**

Emma Frost opened her eyes. "Mindee's disappearance is really taking a toll on him." she stated, before turning to face her lover, who unlike her, was still resting comfortably in bed. Both of them were still relatively undressed, with the beautiful, blonde headmistress not yet finding it in her to slip out of the white lingerie she had on. "…it's difficult to probe deeper into his mind, thanks to the mystical shields he had somehow erected on his own, but I believe it's safe to assume that he blames himself for what happened. He's a really big mess."

"They had a psychic rapport didn't they? Any chances of you repairing it? It's got a better chance of us finding them than Cerebra." suggested Scott, sitting up after his girlfriend, who was now already on her feet. "Maybe I can call in Doctor Strange to help with those shields you're talking about."

"If Mindee doesn't want that connection alive and kicking, then there's little chance anyone alive can do anything about it." replied Emma as she picked up a silk robe that she left on a chair the night before. "I'm actually quite surprised that she hasn't made her presence felt yet. It's been three days, and there hasn't been any sign of giant firebirds in the sky… or for that matter, any apocalyptic hootenanny."

"Yeah. I guess so." Scott mumbled as he pulled on a pair of black sweatpants. "But just because our planet's safe doesn't mean the rest of the Solar System is. Could be the reason we're having trouble tracking her down with Cerebra is she isn't even on the planet anymore."

"Yes, well, if she's in a different planet, then it's their bloody problem now."

"Emma!" Scott scolded, clearly put off by her less altruistic side.

"All I'm saying is, for all we know, the Phoenix could be doing the rest of the galaxy a favor by bringing rapture to a planet populated with sodding Hilton heiresses! She is meant to erase cosmic obsolesces from the grand stage after all…besides, Scott, I will not go back to space. Again. It'll be the third time this year!"

"…at any rate, we really can't do much until the Phoenix makes herself known. That or the Shi'ar come down here and start complaining again about somebody eating their sun."

"Right. That means we do what we are supposed to. We're still teachers Scott. We have children that need taking care of."

* * *

**Basketball Court/07:15

* * *

**

"Ready for another round of getting your ass kicked?" Julian Keller taunted as he stepped into the court. The young Hellion, who had short, black hair and a perennial smirk on his attractive face, stretched his hand, and telekinetically snatched the basketball away from his opponent's grip. Joshua Foley, a student with blonde hair, golden skin, and raging teenage hormones; shouted in protest at his rival's use of powers. Not that he ever listened. "Give it back." Josh reiterated, clearly not backing down. Julian readied himself for another witty comeback, only to stop as he opened his mouth. Josh stopped as well.

"…hey, you okay?" asked Josh, not used to seeing his greatest enemy seemingly lost in thought. It was unnerving to say the least. Julian licked his lips, before turning his attention once more to Josh.

"…it's just one-on-one." the Hellion muttered, his mind clearly at a distance. "First time we're doing this without the gang. I mean, really without."

"Yeah." Josh bowed his head, recalling the siege at the school just three nights ago. The siege led by a woman whose idea of world peace meant giving up free will. It was a battle that sent more than half the student body, including both Josh and Julian's squads, straight to the ICU. And those were the lucky ones.

"How's Santo?" Josh then asked, recalling how the granite-bodied Hellions member nearly died to save two other students. "Big guy's a real hero, you know?"

"…" Julian bit his lower lip and began to dribble the ball.

"…come on…" Josh encouraged in a soft tone. "…one on one. Our squads are going to beat us back and blue if they find out we're whimpering like pansies."

"…hey." Julian pointed with his lips at something behind Josh. "…third floor."

"…?" Josh followed the Hellion's line of sight, and found a girl who was watching them through the windows of her room. It didn't take long for her to disappear behind the curtains, leaving the two boys to their game. Julian shook his head, as if to shake off some violent thoughts in his head. "…it's her."

* * *

**Women's Dormitories/07:18

* * *

**

She hasn't been out of her room all day. All day for the past two days. She was too ashamed. Too scared. Thick, green curtains were drawn to a close, keeping the room in the dark, save for the soft, orange light from the lamp on the desk where she sat. Beckah Adamson was a pretty girl with a captivating smile and long brown hair that danced to the wind. Her GPA may have just been average, but her extra-curricular more than made up for it. She likes Lacrosse. But that was before her father died in Iraq through an accident orchestrated by the United States Government. And that was before she led a group of students into Cerebra and nearly tore it down in an attempt to make sure that it wouldn't be used to by those who would risk seeing another war just for the sake of retaining their precious freedom. It was a battle that resulted in the death of two students. Both of whom were barely sixteen.

"…" Beckah took a deep breath, before leaning her head downward, and using her teeth in order to pull against the other end of a pink string. She tried her best, but she couldn't do it fast enough before the sweat that formed on her brow dripped on top of the gift-wrapped box in front of her. She didn't even wish that her right arm wasn't held together by a sling. She knew she deserved much worse. "…" Beckah leaned back, and grabbed a small, light-blue card on the upper corner of her desk. It was where she wrote the words '_I'm Sorry' _earlier on, which even through all her meticulous attempts, still looked like it was inscribed by a third-grader. She wasn't left-handed after all. "…" She closed her eyes and sighed, before she turned to her bed to stare at the dozen other boxes that she was yet to gift-wrap. All of them in a vain attempt to conceal the fact that she didn't have the stomach to look the people she wronged in the eye. But perhaps, perhaps, she thought, this could be a good enough start.

* * *

**Forest** **Area/ 07:20

* * *

**

Piotr Rasputin gazed at the institute from beneath the cover of tall trees, catching a glimpse of the court where the two students played basketball, before his mind returned to other things. Much like the team's oldest member, Piotr, more commonly known simply as Peter, has taken a liking to the serenity that his surroundings offered. He even thought it ironic that a man whose mutant power was to turn himself into living metal had taken such a liking to nature. And no matter how lost he would seem in his immersion with the beauty around him, he always seemed to know when there was somebody stalking up to him.

"How long have you been there?" the black-haired man asked, as he turned to the direction of the oncoming mutant. "It is still very early to be walking around."

"You don't sound happy to see me." Katherine Pride murmured as she stepped into the Russian's view. A small, purple dragon sat on her shoulder, sniffing the light brown hair that she kept in a ponytail.

"…you should be resting, Katya." answered Peter, as he watched the team's youngest member take a seat beside him. Lockheed, the dragon on her shoulder, took a whiff of the air.

"I'm fine." Katherine replied, waving her cast-bound hand in front of the Russian mutant. "It doesn't hurt so much anymore." she further stated, even though the thought of her hand recently being crushed was in itself, enough to make her flinch.

"The healer was been well rested. You should have him fix that." reminded Peter. Katherine shook her head. "No. The kids need him more than I do. This I can handle. Besides, I'm not really up for resting in our creepy new home. I think it's haunted. Logan said that the parallel universe that it was from was one where the institute was a mental asylum or something. And that the inmates like, rioted because the head examiner, their professor X, did all sorts of crazy things to them."

"…we rebuild mansion so many times. I think it is relief for Scott not to do it again."

"Yeah, well…I just kind of wish that the M.E.T.S. gave us some other alternate reality house to live in. Like the Big Brother house. That'd be nifty."

"…M.E.T.S? American baseball teams have access to parallel universe?"

"Oh. No! No, it's, uh, Logan told me that General Fury felt bad about what happened, so before he disappeared, he authorized for a S.H.I.E.L.D. branch to replace our home with the home from an alternate reality's X-Men. I think it's 'Multiversal Extraction Transit System' or something."

"I would like to visit a parallel universe. Just for change. Perhaps there is one where I am homosexual."

"Yeah right." Kitty chuckled. "You'd be into Logan and I'll be married to Spider-man."

* * *

**Avengers Tower/09:30

* * *

**

"And Cap is out?" asked Logan Howlett, a little agitated that the Avengers' leader wasn't present at the moment. The only one who was there, though out of costume, was a brown-haired school teacher with a super-model for a wife and an uncanny ability to see the humor in any situation. Peter Parker, uncommonly known as the amazing Spider-man, slumped on the sizable couch of their team's penthouse.

"Yeah. He said something about meeting an old friend, or, hey, are you here to see my wife?"

"What? No." Logan quickly responded.

"Because you know, being my wife and all, she's not available. For you. Ever." Peter reminded, before tilting his head to stare at Logan's. "And did you know your hair goes straight up?"

"Indeed it does." added another voice who emerged from entryway to the den. It was Henry McCoy, a world renowned geneticist trapped in the body of a large, blue-furred feline. "I actually tried to scan it for mutant life forms once. Apparently, even Logan's dandruff has psychic shields."

"Shut up." Logan quickly retorted, clearly lacking in the witty banter department. Henry chuckled through closed lips, while leisurely walking up to the glass wall that overlooked the rest of the city. Like Logan is now, Henry too was a member of the world's most popular superhero team. Years before the Scarlet Witch tore it apart. Perhaps it was the search for a little nostalgia that prompted Henry to tag along when he learned that Logan was dropping by the Avengers HQ for a little spiel.

"…just tell Steve that I'm gonna' be busy the next coupla' days." Logan muttered in his usual, gruff manner, making it clear that he wasn't interested in prolonging their conversation. "So don't expect me to be in any Avenging missions or whatever." he then said, before turning toward the door.

"Hey Logan!" Peter called before he could leave. "…I heard about what happened to the school." He then stated, with a hint of genuine concern evident in his voice. "Is everyone okay? I mean, are the kids…?"

"…" Henry's ears lowered, hinting the sadness covered by his silence.

"Couple didn't make it. Dozen or more on the line. Other than that…" Logan closed his eyes for a moment, recalling the fateful night. "…it doesn't matter. Send everyone my regards."

* * *

**Unknown/Unknown

* * *

**

"Everyone's going to die." Agent Brand stood in front of an elevated panel as she uttered those cryptic words, staring at the figures of the men who were hidden behind shadows. A bright light shone down on her, setting her long, green hair seemingly aglow. 'Green' in fact, would be the very first thing to enter one's mind at the sight of the agent, as not only was it the color of her hair, but of her leather suit, lipstick, and eyes as well. "That's your report?" one of the men asked, his clenched hands the only part of his body visible to the woman at the center stage. "Because if you're simply referring to the inevitable nuclear holocaust, or to how the sun will implode in four hundred years, then I'm afraid you need some catching up to do. And some possible demoting as well."

"The Phoenix is back." Brand chided, clearly in no mood for any further theatrics. Her sudden proclamation was potent enough to catch the attention of her superiors.

"…I presume you have confirmation of this?" inquired an elderly woman. Her voice alone had an air of authority. Perhaps of all the five people in front of her, Agent Brand knew that the woman who posited the question deserved the most respect. "Three of our precognitives reported seeing a great fire that, according to them, 'will burn all the lands and oceans'. That was before they went insane and killed themselves. Concurrently, we've received word that oracles from our alien friends in the Breakworld have been bombarded with dreams of rapture. Of a great cleansing, bearing the ineffable mark of the Phoenix. The whole universe is about to be torn in fucking two. That's why we have to act fast. Because if we don't…then the concerned citizens of Breakworld won't be the only ones who'll try and stop this threat from becoming. And those others won't be shy about obliterating our entire solar system to do it."

* * *

**Road to the Xavier Institute/10:00

* * *

**

The Mitchells drove to their destination in solemn silence. Tall trees of pine covered both sides of the road, watching the heartbroken parents weave through the narrow pass. They swayed gently with the wind, as if bound in silence, never to utter the many horrors that they've witnessed at the very end of the long road. Helen Mitchell, a rather large, brown-haired woman in her late thirties, stifled a whimper, trying her best to forget that the last time they came up that rode, their daughter was still with them. Cady was one of the students not fortunate enough to live through the siege at the mansion three nights ago. Her skull was cleaved wide open, after a tragic fall at the hands of a crazed student.

"…" Dave Mitchell, Cady's father, and Helen's husband, turned to his wife for a moment, and placed his hand over hers. It was from him that Cady inherited her beautiful, red hair. And to have something that even slightly resembles a certain feature of a person you lost, it was maddening. Perhaps that was why he kept his hair hidden under a brown hat. Even his hair reminded him of his painful loss. "We'll get those bastards for this, Helen." he gently reassured, while keeping his eyes on the road. "They took our little girl away…and we aren't ever going to let them get away with it."

* * *

**Women's Dormitories/10:05

* * *

**

"…" Beckah bit her lower lip, as she attempted to hold the tears back. Her eyes were too tired. So tired that they hurt. It was the price for wondering how the families of the students who died were feeling at that very moment. How much they must want to hurt her should they ever find out. The teachers weren't talking about it. But she knew that her punishment would come. Sooner or later, it would come. And everyone knows that it isn't the bang of the gun that scares you, but rather, the knowledge that someone out there is about to pull the trigger. Bang.

"_No. No. No." _Beckah shook her head, and rested her temple on a tired palm. "_No. I'm going to make this right." _she thought to herself, still fighting to hold back the tears that were now at the rim of her eyes. "I'm going to make things right." she whispered, in a voice that was soft, but resolute. "Today. I'm finishing this today…" she then promised herself, smiling at the thought of how life would be the same again once all was forgiven. That was when a soft creak snapped her back to reality.

"…" Beckah narrowed her eyes at the door, wondering if there was someone outside. Another creak, this time louder, answered her suspicion. "…who's there?" Beckah weakly asked, afraid that a vengeful student would be on the other side of the closed door. "Who's there?" she asked again, only to feel somebody grab her from behind. A hand was quickly pressed over her mouth, preventing her from screaming, while an arm clasped tightly around her neck. Time slowed down, stretching the pain from her assailant's steel grasp to what seemed like an eternity. But still, she struggled, clawing desperately with her one free hand, while stomping both of her feet in hopes that a passerby should investigate upon hearing. No such luck. A second later, she was violently thrown face first to the full-body mirror that was in the corner of the room. The sickening crack was the sound of her nose getting shattered.

"…" her assailant crept forward, watching intently as Beckah began to crawl to the door, leaving a trail of blood on the wooden floorboards. She was muttering something about letting her live, pleading in fact, but the broken nose got in the way of any actual coherence. Perhaps that made it easier for her assailant.

"…pluhueez…elp…me…" Beckah prayed desperately, trying her best to ignore the pain that racked her body. "…I…dohun…wan…die…"

"…" a sudden crack against the back of her skull silenced her immediately. Another kept her down. And then another. Then another. Then another…

* * *

**Chapter 1 - - End **

**Next Chapter - - Where old friends are lost, heroism is conducted, and a new threat arises…**

**Author's note: My goodness, that certainly took long! Well, hope you enjoyed that first chapter. Love it? Hate it? Don't have a clue what's going on? Drop me a line and tell me what you think! Mabuhay! **


	2. Nearer to Dying

**Author's note: Here we are… the second chapter of my little X-Men story arc! Which reminds me, X-Men, or any other superhero you may or may not read within are totally not mine. They so belong to Marvel, and saying otherwise would cause irreparable damage to my wallet. Mark's mine though, and I'm keeping him: - ) **

**Jottma: Thanks, man. I've dreamt of writing my own comic since I was a kid, so your comment on Cassaday really made my day : - D **

**Anyway, without any further ado…**

**

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**

**Previously on…

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**

**The Astonishing X-Men are a team of mutants who have dedicated their lives to protecting a world that hates and fears them. Led by Scott Summers, AKA CYCLOPS, and EMMA FROST, the X-Men have overcome threats not only to their race, but to the entire universe as well. Nonetheless, at their core, the X-Men are still teachers, mentors to thousands of children who wake up to find their world turned upside-down and inside-out. And in order to locate these children, the X-Men have under their use a small, helmet, CEREBRA, which increases telepathic awareness to near omniscient level. **

**Three night ago, a splinter cell born from the Government faction which fought off against Hitler's supernatural division, who called themselves the RING OF FATIMA, have come to the decision that world peace could only be achieved by sheer force of will. And that a device which could alter minds on a global scale wouldn't hurt either. That's why one of the Ring's members, LILAH GRAHAM, hatched an intricate plot which saw the X-Men out of the country, and their home utterly defenseless. Or so she thought. **

**The NEW X-MEN. Students who have learned the use and control of their uncanny powers under the best. Left alone, and with an entire army at their gates who want to take capture Cerebra, they do the only thing that the world has ever taught them to do. They fight back. With the STEPFORD CUCKOOS on the helm of Cerebra, it would seem that they could easily push the threat in the campus back. That was until Lilah Graham used her telepathy to heighten the violent urges of the students who didn't agree with the majority that Cerebra should not be used in order to force world peace. A riot broke out. Twelve students died, and much, much more were critically wounded. But more than that, the PHOENIX FORCE, which was hiding in MINDEE, one of the Stepford Cuckoos all along, re-emerged to devastating effect. Still, the small team led by Julian Keller, AKA HELLION, and MARK VASQUEZ, manage to beat Lilah and her soldiers. The X-Men finally come home to find the school in ruins, and the three sisters, who are now apparently hosts to the Phoenix, have disappeared. **

**Three days later, everyone in school is still on edge. The parents of one of the deceased students are headed to the school with a grudge to settle. And student BECKAH ADAMSON, one of the girls responsible for starting the riot in the school, gets brutally attacked by an unknown assailant inside her own room…

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**Chapter 2: "Nearer to Dying"

* * *

**

The sky was red. It would be up to you to decide whether it was like a rose's petal or a canvas smeared with blood. Perhaps some twisted joke that the heavens plays on a society which lives by ripping out the entrails of others. Of those who were weaker. Across the land, massive towers of rock and metal could be seen piercing the skies, testament that this planet's inhabitants made no sacrifice of technology in favor for heightening their physical prowess. It was the Breakworld. Quite simply, a world where you either break others, or be broken yourself. A world where the Darwinian theory of survival has become the very foundation of existence. And inside a large dome made of metal and glass that overlooked a gargantuan, barren cliff, there stood three of the planet's wisest, and arguably, most powerful, residents. The Liga. Violet robed men with green skin, red eyes, and long, flagellates that grew from the line of their cheekbones. Silent, they stood, atop a round pedestal which overlooked a vast, empty space, filled with a darkness that seemed to show no sign of end. At it's middle was erected a large, ornate mirror, so long that it's top was blurred by the red light that fell from the glass dome above, while its bottom disappeared into the cold void where it stood.

They called it the Timeshadows. A gift from an old man who simply referred himself as a Stranger who walked the galaxies in search of the ultimate truth. And in this gift's cold reflection, it has been said that every possible future may be viewed, just by willing it to be seen. Needless to say, it was a tool that has provided their people a great leverage in many wars throughout time and galaxy. Generations upon generations of the Breakworld's leaders have looked upon the Timeshadows' unflinching reflection in times of doubt and fear to seek guidance. And never has it failed in giving them the answers they needed. Never. Save for today. "Fire…there is nothing but fire" muttered the oldest of the three, as he stared at the image of a cosmic inferno, which spread across the entire multiverse. He held a long, crude, staff in his hand; a tool that had a small, round cage at the top, which housed what looked to be a brain with eyes. Eyes that were floating outside of the cage, held only by thick veins that pulsated from the center of the tool's mind.

"This…every possible future…all ruined." mumbled the second oldest. "There is no escaping the Phoenix."

"Those fools from the Shi'ar Empire truly have driven her insane…" bitterly commented the youngest. "I told you that we should have eradicated their pathetic race when we had the chance!"

"What is done is done. Fighting the Shi'ar will only be a waste of our time." calmly posited the oldest, before using a small remote inside his staff to cause the reflection of the Timeshadows to fade into smoke. "The Dark Phoenix may have blinded us to the many possible futures, but it does not mean that we have to sit back and simply allow what we have witnessed to pass." he then explained while he turned to face his two, less experienced brothers.

"…is there any word from the humans?" asked the second, with a twinge of disgust present in his dry voice. "Have they done anything to aid in rectifying this problem?"

"No. The time for pleasantries are over. Their cowardly ways have failed us already." answered the oldest, just as he turned to face the door. "This time, we take no more chances. We will break them."

* * *

**Classroom/10:15

* * *

**

Mark stared blankly at the blackboard. His professor, a man with a pair of thick-framed glasses, and a belly that seemed to strain against the fabric of his suit, babbled on about how infinite passion is to be defined as 'man's passion for the infinite'. The philosophy of faith. It was worse than a death match with Apocalypse. The professor droned on, possibly unaware of the fact that none of his students were actually listening. In fact there was only a handful present for the day's lecture. The rest were either too bored; still hurt, or most likely, a combination of both. "…" Mark put his pencil down and folded his arms on top of the desk, where he immediately rested his head. A small feeling of comfort washed over him when he closed his eyes, as he allowed himself to drift away from the clueless educator's endless rambling. Back to the edges of his mind, where he tortures himself with the image of his missing girlfriend.

That was when a great explosion tore the room apart, burning everything and everyone inside. A vision; one which was both so very beautiful, and so deeply frightening, suddenly arose from the inferno. A young woman, completely engulfed, yet completely unscathed, by fire. And as Mark felt the skin peel off of his body and subsequently turn to ash, the only thing he could do was scream. And the six other students in the room gasped in surprise. Nothing. It was nothing. It wasn't even a dream. A blonde girl with short hair stared sitting by the windows stared at him in concern. Mark got to lock his eyes with hers for about half a second before she shyly turned away. "…Mr. Vasquez?" the professor worriedly called, his hand kept still over a half-finished word he was writing on the blackboard. "…is everything…are you alright?"

* * *

**Cerebra/10:16

* * *

**

Emma turned her head up, wondering about the mysterious spike of psychic energy she had just felt. Unfortunately though, the trace disappeared as quick as it came, leading the highly-skilled telepathic nothing to work with, thus putting her back to the current matter at hand. The War Room. A collective psychic representation within the confines of the host telepath's mind, where anyone can discuss the most private of matters without fear of being overheard. In this case, the six X-Men found themselves sitting around a white table that floated atop an expanse of empty, light blue space. Sitting at the head was the illusion's maker, the White Queen, who was leaning back on her chair with both arms and legs crossed. Opposite her sat the school headmaster, and her lover, Scott, whose perennial frown even made its way to his psychic projection. At the sides were Henry and Logan, as well as Katherine and Peter. All of them were in their X-gear.

Around them floated large headshots of the students who were not fortunate enough to have survived the siege on the institute, as well as those who were well on their way to joining them. "I'm sure that I don't have to say it out loud…" Emma started, as she began to rotate the images of the fateful night around them. "…but for those of who you who are currently still living in denial…right now, we X-Men are at a distinct disadvantage. And not in that silly 'we're the underdog so we win in the end' kind. It's the 'if they hit us now, we're as good as dead' kind. The attack three nights ago crippled us. Literally."

"Wait- -" Logan shook his head for a moment. "…sorry, Ashlee Simpson was on, needed to change the station." he quickly explained, since both Henry and himself were still physically stuck in traffic over at Danbury, on their way to meet with an old friend in search for enlightenment on the recent events.

"…as I was saying…" Emma immediately continued. "…some very angry parents of some very dead children are pushing the school into legal trouble…trouble which I'm sure Scott can handle." Emma turned to Scott, who nodded his head. "Also…" Emma leaned forward, resting her chin on her fist. "…campus defenses are still not functioning- -"

"It is not easy when everything is metric." Peter chided, as he was the one charged with reconfiguring the defense systems which have proven instrumental to helping the X-Men. In fact, recalibrating the school's defenses is what Peter was doing right at that moment, with the left side of his brain doing all the work.

"That is why Katherine is supposed to help you, dear." Emma declared nonchalantly. Katherine took offense. "Hey, you try finding the time to upgrade alien tech while half a hundred severely traumatized students are asking for some 'professional' help." she bitterly suggested.

"I'm sorry, but can you 'not' handle your job? Is the prospect of matching wits with a bunch of sixteen year olds a little too much?" Emma snidely asked with a raised eyebrow. "Because I for one am bleeding my bloody brains out scanning the world over for the Phoenix, while at the same time plucking out the right side of your brains and keeping you here. Minus a few unsightly pounds I might add."

"At least I'm all natural, Miss Frost. And it's called a commlink." Katherine slyly rebutted. "Want me to teach you how to use it? It's really nifty!"

"Both of you. Quiet." Scott immediately interjected, clearly in no mood for their telepathic meeting to disintegrate into another verbal contest between the two women. "Not now."

"…" both Katherine and Emma withdrew their claws, eyeing each other ominously for a moment, before silently breaking off. Emma then casually proceeded to check her nails.

"Kitty, is there something on your mind?" Scott then asked, offering the team's youngest member a chance to voice her concerns.

"…It's just, yeah, I can take half my mind here and the other over here at the guidance center…listening… but…but Scott… you've got to hear what these kids are saying…see them…I mean, the way they look at each other in the halls? In the classrooms? Anywhere. It's like they're just waiting for the right moment to jump and tear each other's throats out. The girl I'm talking to right now is worried because she's having dreams about taking a knife and going on a stabbing spree in the school cafeteria!"

"…" Scott turned to Emma, who didn't bother to provide an answer. She already knew who would do it for her.

"Well, it's only natural." Henry calmly responded, right on cue. "The kids just had their own civil war. You don't get over something like that in the span of three days…"

"Yeah, I know that." Katherine replied, brushing a strand of her to the back of her ear. "But, instead of, of stretching our resources, maybe we should concentrate on this first. On the kids. I mean, this is still a school. Maybe we can…you know…put a little tranquility back to their lives…"

"…" Emma raised an eyebrow. "Are you suggesting that I invade their minds and force them back into the 'Thousand-Acre Wood'? Because if you don't recall, this whole debacle started because of that very sort of despotic proposition."

"No- - No! Of course not! It's not that...it's…I'm not asking you to change their personalities or mind wipe them or anything, I'm just asking if maybe you could do something to stop them from taking their grudges to the next level. I mean, it's that or I start adding morphine to the cafeteria food."

"I don't think it's anything to worry about, Kitty." Logan interrupted. "These kids, they saw war. They felt it firsthand. And I doubt any of 'em would wanna' do anything to bring all that blood and gore back. Not if they have a death wish. And if any of them do decide to act on their stupidity, we remind them what happened to the last bunch of jokers who decided to mess with the school's name."

"At any case, if a student does cross a line, we'll be quick to administer some discipline." Scott declared, hoping to settle the topic. "Logan, Hank, are the roads still clogged or do you want a teleporter to help you out?" he then asked. "We don't exactly want to keep our old friend waiting."

"…hmm, which reminds me…" Emma turned her head and gazed off into the far distance, obviously using her telepathy to check on something. "…we'll need to adjourn this little discussion for the moment, darlings… 'something wicked this way comes…'."

* * *

**Outside, Gates of the Xavier Institute/10:20

* * *

**

Dave stared at the school while he stood; his left hand in his pocket, while his right holding onto the open door to the driver's seat of his car. Helen was still inside, sitting on the passenger's seat in what looked like a trance. You didn't need to be a psychic to see that she was completely shattered inside. Dave certainly didn't. He knew that there was no reaching her. That the words they exchanged were no longer between husband and wife, but between two people grieving over the loss of somebody they loved. More like strangers who had a common child. "…" Dave caught himself before he let loose his urge to scream.

"…Dave." Helen called, signaling at the school's intercom with both her eyes. Dave nodded, before turning to the small, metallic device that protruded from the brick pillar at the side of the gate. Helen closed her eyes. Dave's hand trembled as he reached for the button.

"_Mr. and Mrs. Mitchell?" _suddenly rang a man's voice which came from the other end of the machine. "_This is Scott Summers, headmaster of the Xavier Institute…please, come inside." _the voice then declared, just as the steel gates bellowed open. Dave took a moment to stare at the Georgian mansion in front of him, and took a deep breath. Even from where he stood, he could already make out the figure of a student patiently awaiting their arrival. She must be the one who will lead them to the headmaster's office. Dave narrowed his eyes.

* * *

**Cerebra/10:22

* * *

**

"Sure you can handle them, Scott?" Emma asked, keeping a small fraction of her eyes on her lover, while the rest of her mind was still scouring the planet. Long range super-telepathy, it was called. All thanks to the amplification abilities of Cerebra; a machine housed in a large, round chamber lined with metallic plates that were meticulously attuned to specific frequencies that paralleled the electric functions of the mind. "…because you know, all I have to do is think it, and they go from hell bent malefactors to the school's gushing sponsors."

* * *

**Headmaster's office/-at the same time-

* * *

**

"_Don't even joke." _Scott telepathically replied, as he readied himself while watching the visitors' car coming up the main rotunda from his office window. He shifted his weight, tugging at the ends of his white, flannel top, before fixing the belt buckle that kept his brown slacks up. Even at the inevitable verbal assault that was sure to come his way, he still couldn't shake the question nagging at the back of his head. The question of why he felt much more comfortable in his costume than when he wasn't. Much less vulnerable. Ever since he was young, Scott was taught how to fend, not only for himself, but for the people he cared for. At the age of twenty, he had already memorized every passage that Sun Tzu ever wrote on the art of war, and has trained in everything from Philippine Eskrima to Brazilian Capoeira. He could literally level a mountain just by looking at it. Perhaps that was why, to him, the threat of something he couldn't hit, seemed much, much more frightening. Much more real.

* * *

**Danbury, Connecticut/-at the same time-

* * *

**

The sound of silver utensils clattering against fine China and the absent chattering of bored socialites filled the air of the upper class restaurant, which sat prettily on the opposite corner of Elmwood Park. A soft, subtle hymn from an old violinist standing on stage set the proper mood for the always distinguished patrons, including a beautiful, blonde woman with long, curly hair and a pair of round glasses. Her name is Valerie Cooper. A long-time ally of the both the X-Men and the X-Factor, as well as a current member of the newly founded Office for National Emergency. On a table just a few feet away dined three agents who were assigned to protect her, should anything go awry. "…" The people stop talking, and the violinist, for half a second, stops playing. Two men have just entered the restaurant. Valerie smiled.

"Hank. Logan." she greeted, as she watched the two men approach. "It's been quite some time."

"Val." Henry greeted back, while Logan raised his hand and gave her a casual salute. Valerie graciously stood up and gave Henry a long embrace, one which ended with a light, friendly kiss on his furry cheek. Logan extended his hand for a handshake, but was caught off guard when Valerie opted to hug him as well. A few of the restaurant's patrons watched them taking their seats, scrutinizing every movement, not because they were afraid, but because the X-Men were very well on the road to becoming unofficial celebrities thanks to the boom in mutant culture. Celebrities. It made Logan a little uncomfortable.

* * *

**Cerebra/10:24

* * *

**

Emma took a deep breath, as she once again invested her energies in pinpointing the location of the recently resurrected Phoenix Force. At that very moment, a stampede in South East Asia kills close to a hundred people. She gives the grieving strength to go on. A ferry over at the Red Sea is dangerously close to having a disastrous engine failure. She telepathically orders somebody to check on the boiler room before it's too late. Somewhere in Texas, a man was raping her twin daughters. Emma curls her nose and then subjects him into an excruciating, crippling stroke that will leave him paralyzed for the rest of his life. Three acts of heroism in less than one minute. And still no sign of the Phoenix. "…_girls…where the hell are you hiding?" _asked the White Queen as she jumped from one continent to the next, hoping to find the Phoenix before it decides to make itself known. After all, another surprise was the last thing they needed.

* * *

**Headmaster's Office/-at the same time-

* * *

**

A thick, blanket of light came in through the massive windows behind the silent headmaster, thus covering his face in shadow. His ruby quarts glasses however, still remained a bright shade of scarlet. "…before you say anything else, I want to get something out of the way." Dave declared as he and his wife Helen sat in front of Scott's desk. Helen holding back her tears. "We don't want your money." Dave explained, his voice stern and threatening. "Your money…and we know you have lots…but it won't bring our Cady back. I know that. We, know that. But maybe…maybe some way, you people can." he proposed softly, a small glimmer of hope shimmering in his eye. Helen remained practically catatonic.

"…I beg your pardon, Mr. Mitchell?" Scott asked, a little caught off guard at the man's thinly veiled suggestion. Helen slowly turned her head and faced her husband, whose eyes were still locked with Scott's own. "You heard me." Dave sternly responded, as he leaned forward just to emphasize how serious he was. "This is a school full of super-powered mutants. Mutants, who you've said, could…could cure cancer! Heal any wounds! If that's true then there must be someone here who can bring my daughter back! Like that- -that X-Statix woman from television!"

"Sir…please." Scott politely interrupted, before the man in front of him could go on. "…you have to understand that, even for all of our abilities…there are still a lot of things that are impossible for us to do. And even if we could…there are still lines that we just shouldn't cross. We're still only human."

"But…but we can pay you." Dave whispered in a miserable voice. Scott fell silent, thankful that they never got to see his pained eyes, as he was once again reminded that there are still a lot of things that are much more agonizing than being thrown of cliffs or stabbed by claws.

"Anything you want…we'll pay you anything…just make her alive again." Dave further pleaded. Scott closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

* * *

**Danbury, Connecticut/-at the same time-

* * *

**

"I can't do that." Valerie stated, in a voice tainted with both sadness and resolution. Logan leaned back on his chair and let out an exasperated sigh. Henry pushed his glasses up the bridge of his snout.

"You know what this means to us, Val…" beseeched Logan, who rested his hand on top of an empty glass. "Kids died that day. Kids who had their entire lives ahead of them. And if you know who is responsible- -"

"I still won't be able to help you." Valerie poignantly interrupted.

"Val. Please." Henry implored, leaning closer to their longtime friend. "These people were CIA. An organization that you have intimate connections with. And these people hurt us, bad. And if we just let them get away, there's no telling when they'll come back and attempt to do it again. We've got our tails in between our legs here. Literally."

"…" Logan grabbed Henry's glass of wine and shot it down in one swig.

"I'm sorry Hank…Logan…I really am. But how do we tell this to the world? These people you're looking for, they have families. Connections. There isn't any big knockout punch here; no giant optic blast to end the fight…you can't solve it that way. And I know that's what you'll try to do." Valerie turned to look at Logan. "But violence… right now, violence isn't the answer."

"…tell that to the people who won't be picking their kids up for their Christmas break this year." Logan bitterly responded, earning him a reprimanding look from Henry.

"It's treason to fight the United States Government, Logan." Valerie declared, though she still kept her voice low as to not attract anymore attention from the other patrons.

"Oh…but when they send an entire regimen of soldiers to kill children in their own land…it's in the name of self-defense, am I right?" Henry bluntly asked. Valerie glared back.

* * *

**Cerebra/10:26

* * *

**

"Wait…" Emma squinted through her telepathic lenses, feeling something amiss in between the fields of emotion and energy. It was subtle at first, like a small rumbling that comes from a hungry stomach. Then it grew louder, stronger; a feeling of pure, psychic immensity that the White Queen had barely survived encountering two times before. An ocean of bright light that no mind would dare venture in, lest he or she wish to never find the way back. The endless shore that leads to the room where life and death incarnate sleeps. "…!" with a sense of urgency, Emma grabbed onto the sides of her amplifier helmet, and began to concentrate harder. Something was wrong. Terribly wrong. There was a numbing cold that crept all over her body, seeping into the corners of her mind and stabbing her like a thousand tiny needles. Worming their way into her thoughts. Poisoning. Her knees shook. Sweat trailed down her lips and blood trickled down her nose and ears. There was no mistake. "…she's here…"

* * *

**Headmaster's Office/-at the same time-

* * *

**

"What?" Scott half-turned his head at the faint echo of his lover's strained voice. Normally, he would have rushed to her side, wherever she may be, just to make sure that she was safe. But like her, he too was in some slightly more pressing matters at hand. Namely the livid man who stood in front of him.

"You heard us." Dave angrily pointed out, his sorrow already giving way to pure frustration. "You people…you are not fit to be the guardians of our children."

"Sir, with all due respect- -" Scott contested, his mind torn between worrying about the couple in front of him, and the woman inside his head.

"Where were you?" Dave then shouted, slamming both of his palms on Scott's desk and leaning over the silent headmaster in a menacing stance. "You know! You monsters! You know! You know that there are people out there who want to kill your kind! Kids! Babies!" Dave then pointed his finger to Scott's face. "You know this! You know it and you still left our children without anyone to protect them! You sick son of a bitch! You left my baby girl to die!"

* * *

**Danbury, Connecticut/-at the same time-

* * *

**

"That's not true." Valerie denied softly, keeping her eyes locked with both Henry and Logan's. "The United States Government has done everything it could to promote harmony between human and mutant- -"

"Really?" Logan irately interrupted, leaning forward. "Is that why every year, some nut job from the Republican Party still pushes for the Mutant Registration Act? Is that why the Sentinel Program got approved? What about Operation Zero Tolerance? What about weapon fucking plus?"

"Logan!" Beast pulled his teammate back, before any of them could make a bigger scene of their present debacle. The violinist had already stopped, a little worried about the verbal dispute between the three. The rest of the restaurant patrons have also taken the moment to listen in on what was happening. "…" No one made a sound. No one dared.

"Sirs? Ma'am?" asked a nervous waiter, who approached Valerie, who seemed the least intimidating, from the side. "I'm terribly sorry, but perhaps the three of you could- -"

* * *

**Cerebra/10:27

* * *

**

"- - get out of my head!" screamed the White Queen, as she pulled the amplifier helmet off of her, and with a pained grunt, quickly threw it down to the steel bridge floor. The loud sound of metal against metal echoed throughout the round chamber, fading away just as Emma found herself on her knees. There were tears in her eyes. "…_no…no…no…" _she thought mournfully, over and over, trying to shut out the images that have been burned into her mind. Visions of a charred world, where not even the strongest hero or villain would have survived. She could still feel the flames. Fire that was colder than ice. Worse yet, a vision of the only possible way that cosmic holocaust would be averted. "…_it's not just her…it's not just her…" _Emma shook her head wildly, in some vain effort to shake the thoughts out. She failed miserably. "No! Not again! Not again!"

* * *

**Headmaster's Office/-at the same time-

* * *

**

"Never again." Dave promised through gritted teeth. "I told you he'd say no…" Helen whispered lifelessly. "I told you, but you didn't listen…"

"…" Dave ignored her, still keeping his attention to the X-Man sitting silently in front of him. The mutant's seemingly emotional detachment from the issue only fueled his rage further. "Do you hear me, Mr. Summers? Never again will innocent children be put in the line thanks to your…your negligence!"

"It's all a waste of time…" Helen then chided; her broken voice still no louder than the sound of a falling needle. "Why did you bring me here?"

"Tomorrow morning, we are coming back here with the rest of the families who lost their children… and we will bring every goddamned news team in this state…and we will show the world what harm you've put our kids through. We will show them that none of you are fit to be the guardians of our children!"

"Mr. Mitchell - -" Scott readied himself for the rain of profanities that he was sure to receive for what he was about to say, but something prevented him from spitting it out. Footsteps. Heavy and in speed. Dave curiously turned to the direction of the door, while Scott stood from his desk in alarm. The footsteps drew closer and closer, with no hint of slowing down. Scott readied his aim, as the closed doors were broken open. "Hisako?" the headmaster shouted, realizing that it was the Japanese student equipped with a large, psionic exo-armor who had literally barged into his office. Her eyes were wide open. Terrified. In her arms was Beckah's brutally beaten body. She was already dead.

* * *

**Danbury, Connecticut/-at the same time-

* * *

**

"…!" Logan looked out the window for half a second and gritted his teeth. So did Henry. Valerie immediately realized something was wrong. Without warning, the verdant memorial square that was on the opposite side of the street erupted into a great column of cosmic fire, reducing everything in it to ashes within a fraction of a second. "Get down!" Henry screamed. Logan instinctively dove forward and tackled Valerie to the floor, right before the broken glass that flew from the force of the shockwave could cut her into pieces. The waiter who had just told them to keep the volume down was decapitated instantly by a rather large shard. The rest of the patrons were not spared either, as severed limbs and dead bodies were flung through the air like broken mannequins.

* * *

**Planet Earth/-at the same time-

* * *

**

For anyone who had a clear view of the blue sphere that they called home, the sight before them must have truly brought forth the fear of God into their hearts. Thin, thread-like tendrils made of bright fire ravaged the entire planet, like hellish rainbows that burned from deep beneath the ground, rising in to the atmosphere and then bending right down to pierce yet another blot of land. It was like watching the rapture at last unfold, as if the very gates of hell have opened to usher in humanity's final days. And beyond the soft glow of the sun's reflection from Earth's surface, and into the unfeeling vastness of space, did for a second appear, a spark that was brighter than the oldest star. A spark that shrieked and stretched across the infinite darkness as if to claim the entire universe for its own…

* * *

**Chapter 2 – End**

**Next Chapter – where chaos ensues. **

**Author's note: That's it for this week! I hope you enjoyed! Drop me a line and tell me what you think…; - ) **


	3. Chaotic

**Author's note: Sorry if that took long peeps! Here it is, the kinetic new chapter! Enjoy! **

**Previously on…**

**The Astonishing X-Men are a team of mutants who have dedicated their lives to protecting a world that hates and fears them. Led by Scott Summers, AKA CYCLOPS, and EMMA FROST, the X-Men have overcome threats not only to their race, but to the entire universe as well. Nonetheless, at their core, the X-Men are still teachers, mentors to thousands of children who wake up to find their world turned upside-down and inside-out. And in order to locate these children, the X-Men have under their use a small, helmet, CEREBRA, which increases telepathic awareness to near omniscient level. **

**Three night ago, a splinter cell born from the Government faction which fought off against Hitler's supernatural division, who called themselves the RING OF FATIMA, have come to the decision that world peace could only be achieved by sheer force of will. And that a device which could alter minds on a global scale wouldn't hurt either. That's why one of the Ring's members, LILAH GRAHAM, hatched an intricate plot which saw the X-Men out of the country, and their home utterly defenseless. Or so she thought. **

**The NEW X-MEN. Students who have learned the use and control of their uncanny powers under the best. Left alone, and with an entire army at their gates who want to take capture Cerebra, they do the only thing that the world has ever taught them to do. They fight back. With the STEPFORD CUCKOOS on the helm of Cerebra, it would seem that they could easily push the threat in the campus back. That was until Lilah Graham used her telepathy to heighten the violent urges of the students who didn't agree with the majority that Cerebra should not be used in order to force world peace. A riot broke out. Twelve students died, and much, much more were critically wounded. But more than that, the PHOENIX FORCE, which was hiding in MINDEE, one of the Stepford Cuckoos all along, re-emerged to devastating effect. Still, the small team led by Julian Keller, AKA HELLION, and MARK VASQUEZ, manage to beat Lilah and her soldiers. The X-Men finally come home to find the school in ruins, and the three sisters, who are now apparently hosts to the Phoenix, have disappeared. **

**Three days later, everyone in school is still on edge. The parents of one of the deceased students are headed to the school with a grudge to settle. And student BECKAH ADAMSON, one of the girls responsible for starting the riot in the school, gets brutally attacked by an unknown assailant inside her own room. Before she is found however, the world is suddenly torn asunder by massive columns of fire that wreak unspeakable destruction across the lands. It is the Phoenix.

* * *

**

**Chapter 3: "Chaotic"

* * *

**

Julian laughed out loud as Cessily Kincaid, the red-headed girl made entirely of Mercury, detailed last night's Letterman show by morphing her hands into the host's thin frame. Kevin Ford, a young man with brown hair and even browner clothes, joined in the joviality, only to stop as he noticed some of the other students staring disapprovingly at them. It was something Bryan Cruz, the Puerto Rican student who could compel people to run away from anything he chooses, had already noticed. Julian seemed oblivious to it all, laughing louder when he accidentally spilled a carton of milk. "…guys, maybe we should tone it down." Kevin whispered, suddenly feeling a pang of guilt that they were already having a good time in such a short time's notice.

"Let's just finish up, you two." Cessily suggested, as she became extremely uncomfortable now that she noticed how much the other kids were staring at them.

"Why?" Julian asked. His two friends gaped at him in silence. Cessily began to stutter a response. Bryan picked her words up." Dude, we really shouldn't…you know…be happy yet."

"…" Julian raised his eyebrow, literally scoffing at his friends words. Somebody from a nearby table murmured something very derogatory about the Hellions to her friend, keeping her voice just loud enough to make sure that everyone else heard what she said.

"…maybe we should just leave…" Kevin softly proposed. Cessily nodded her head in compliance. Bryan didn't stray from the major opinion.

"Yeah? Screw that." Julian answered without a moment's hesitation. "Come on guys, we survived. We deserve this." he casually immediately reasoned, skipping on the fact that two of their number were still in critical condition. Cessily lowered her gaze.

"I mean come on!" the Hellion confidently reiterated, standing up and extending both his arms sideways, addressing the twenty-three other students in the cafeteria. Kevin shook his head at the squad leader, trying to signal him to stop what he was planning to do. No such luck. "We survived! Us! We faced an entire army and we lived to tell the tale! There's nothing to be sad about!" No one said a word. Everyone just stared at the Hellion as if he had a screw loose. Julian didn't take the hint. He didn't want to. "Guys! Come on! Lighten up! I mean- -"

"Well what about our dead friends, you dumbass?" chided an angry, male student from the corner of the room. "You saying we should be happy that our friends are gone? People we knew?"

"…" Julian stared at the student in the corner, unable to come up with any response other than to clear his throat. The room fell silent. Cessily tried to tug at Julian's jacket in an effort to sit him back down.

"He's right!" suddenly shouted another student coming from a different corner of the room, breaking the dread silence. "Are you just that damn stupid, Keller? You insensitive asshole! You think that this is anything to be happy about? Our friends are dead! Can't you drill that through your thick skull? Our! Friends! Are! Dead!"

"Yeah!" screamed a girl sitting beside him. It didn't take long before the other students joined in, some in compliance to verbally battering the Hellion, while some others were trying to restrain their friends. Julian was speechless. Cessily on the other hand, simply couldn't take it anymore.

"They sacrificed their lives to help us!" she angrily interjected, standing up after Julian. "And how do you repay them? Huh? How? By sulking? Brooding?"

"As opposed to going 'tralalala' like nothing happened?" snapped another female student. "You're just glad that none of your friends got killed! Tell me! Do you think you'll still be like that if Santo or Sooraya didn't make it? Come on, Cessily, tell me! Tell me!"

"…" Cessily gritted her teeth, as the student's accusation nearly caused her to stagger back. Partly because she was too scared to give it any thought, and partly because she knew that the girl screaming at her was right. The other students joined in on the verbal dispute, all the while the cafeteria's cook and service personnel tried desperately to calm everyone down. Kevin held his hands over his ears and kept his head low, trying his best to stay out of the whole thing.

Bryan was on red alert, ready to focus his energies on tagging the entire squad to make sure that a conflict won't arise. One of the students raised his fists, as his entire body began to glow with blue energy. Another began to talk in three distinct voices, each one louder than the other. Julian pressed his hands forward, threatening the other students to back off. Somebody was crying.

"Everybody, just calm down!" yelled a student, only top be pushed aside as a green-scaled, young man rushed past her, ready to pounce on the Hellion. Julian's eyes widened in horror as he caught a glimpse at the unsheathed claws that came at him. Three seconds before impact. And that was when a bright light broke everything apart.

"That's enough!" ordered a young man who stood by the doorway, just as the bright light began to fade. It was Mark. "No. More. Fighting." he calmly stated, without as much a hint of intimidation at the sight of a dozen, fuming students with charged superpowers. Mark was breathing heavily, while sweat clearly stuck onto his skin and shirt. It was obvious that he came down there running. "…please. Hisako just…Hisako found Beckah Adamson. She's dead."

"…" the students all stared at the messenger in shock, almost as if each one of them had just woken up. Mark licked his lips, he himself unsure of the words that have slipped from his dry mouth. Perhaps if he said it again, the reality of the situation would manage to sink in. Perhaps. Unfortunately, the denial that would come after the shock needed to be kept at bay, as three students suddenly screamed in complete agony. Cries of both surprise and concern soon filled the cafeteria. Mark was still standing at the doorway, his heart racing at the sound of the anguished students screaming about a great fire. Shrieks that were finally swallowed by what sounded like a ten-thousand ton locomotive flying overhead.

Everyone looked up, some instinctively ducking, as the deafening sound echoed across the entire hall. "…!" Mark narrowed his eyes and quickly sprinted across the cafeteria, running up to the windows on the far end. Julian followed didn't hesitate to fly after him, realizing that whatever was above them should be in clear view. The rest of the students, at least those who weren't helping their friends, all decided to rush to the windows, hoping to catch a glimpse of what was happening outside. Sweaty palms soon found themselves pressed against the brittle panes, as the students stared up at what was once the sky in horror. It was ablaze. Literally. The vast shade of light blue had been dissected by massive streaks of scorching fire. One of the students kept repeating to himself that this couldn't possibly be happening. Someone from the back began to mumble about something called Galactus.

Mark swallowed a gigantic lump in his throat as he struggled to find the right words. Something to say that would help him ease his nerves. Something. Anything. "…" Nothing. He soon turned his attention to Julian, who too was rendered wordless by the sight above. The two students took a second to exchange worried glances. Mark took a deep breath. "We have to find a teacher." Julian nodded, when without warning, a loud explosion echoed through the glass and into the room, making everyone jump in surprise.

A plane, unable to move fast enough, had just flown into one of the flaming columns. Only a cloud of steel and fire could be seen from below. The students began to scream. The airplane's broken parts where in a freefall. And they were headed to crash right on top of the school. "Get away from the windows!" shouted Mark, afraid that anything from falling debris to a delayed shockwave could tear through and injure the rest of the students. A girl suddenly curled into a fetal position on the floor; phasing herself into intangibility out of fear. One of the smaller freshmen tripped over a chair as she attempted to run out of the cafeteria. The gargantuan junior behind her, a young man that looked like an elephant, was unable to stop in time, tripping over her just as she was pulling herself up, and crushing her beneath a mammoth leg.

Julian quickly flew to the young girl's aid, using his telekinesis to push the much larger student off of her. "Come on, it's okay…" the Hellion whispered, only to cover his mouth in shock at the sight of a gigantic gash on the girl's forehead. "Hang on!" he then yelled, as he cradled the girl in his arms and flew to the infirmary's direction. One of the students run right through the concrete wall, tearing it down effortlessly by jumping right through. A rather large piece of debris cracked into another student's head, one that was just making his way to the cafeteria.

Another student began to cry, his frail body suddenly glowing with bright green energy as he did. A female student beside him tried calming him down, pleading for him to stop before his power gets out of control and levels the entire room. He wasn't listening. "…!" Mark remembered that boy, a young man brought in after he accidentally destroyed his entire house. It wouldn't be far-fetched to imagine that he could have done the same here. "Go! Go! Go!" he shouted as loud as he can, signaling to the Cuban boys friend that she should leave by waving his hands to the direction of the door. She hesitated for a second, before doing what he said.

"Kid! Come on! Get a grip!" Mark yelled as he grabbed the younger student's shoulders. He still wasn't listening. "Kid! Please! Just shut up!" No point. Mark shook his head, and seeing no other possible action, resorted to cracking his fist right across the boy's temple. The blow was enough to knock him out, allowing for the energy he was building up to dissipate harmlessly into the wind. Problem solved. At least, one problem solved, as the sound of large, blunt objects colliding with the hard ground began to echo. They could hear it on the rooftops, and they could feel it as the Earth shook. "…are those…?" Cessily took a step closer to the windows. "…what are those?" she asked out loud, at the sight of charred figures freefalling right outside the cafeteria. It was only when noticing one of the charred remains grasping tightly onto another, much smaller one, that Cessily gasped.

That was when a turbine from the exploded airplane landed on the grounds just outside the cafeteria hall, sending smaller pieces breaking through the windows like metal bullets. A particularly sharp piece bounced off the floor. The female student, the one who had just previously attempted to help calm the explosive child down, screamed in agony as the large steel shard impaled her thigh, right as she was jumping through the collapsed section of the wall that one of the seniors was responsible for earlier on.

"…" Mark in the meanwhile; fell to his knees, holding back the urge to scream at the pain caused by the large shrapnel sticking out of his arm. There were still about three students inside the room with him, all either too hurt or too scared to move, except for one who was crawling to the side of the girl who now had a pole stuck through her leg. Even the cafeteria staff have evacuated. "…!" with trembling hands, Mark grabbed onto the hot edges that protruded from the back of his arm.

When people saw those kinds of wounds in television, most of them think that they could just shrug off the pain. That it couldn't possibly be as bad as it looked. Mark now knew better. It was excruciating. Gritting his teeth, and closing his eyes, he started to pull the shrapnel out of his arm; cursing profusely under his breath at the painful sensation of searing metal sliding against exposed muscle. And to think Wolverine always made it look so easy.

"Mark!" Cessily, who was still out of breath, worriedly called from behind the now empty cafeteria counter. "Are you alright?" she then asked, still cautiously squatting where she was. Mark responded by screaming in both pain and frustration, right as he yanked the metal piece out of his arm. Cessily covered her mouth with her hand. "I'm fine." Mark irately responded.

"S-Somebody! Help!" then shrieked a girl who was now in the hallway, kneeling in the other side of the collapsed wall, catching both Mark and Cessily's attention. "Sh-sh-she's not moving! Somebody! She's not moving!"

"…!" Mark quickly got to his feet, and limped his way towards the frantic student, gaining speed as the young woman's voice grew increasingly hysterical. Cessily didn't stay far behind. The girl knelt between two bodies. To her right was the student unfortunate enough to catch a piece of concrete rubble with his face. To her left meanwhile, was the girl who had what looked like a steel pipe sticking out of her thigh. Her eyes were still wide open, staring blankly into the ceiling. Dead, thanks to bleeding out from a severed femoral artery. The pain she felt during her last moments must have been unbearable.

"God…" Mark pressed his palm against his face at the sight of the dead student. There was nothing anyone could do now. The girl was in tears. It didn't matter if you knew the person or not. Watching someone die in front of you always leaves a hole behind. A sick, annoying vacuum that will make you wish you could have saved that somebody's life. It took a few seconds before he gathered enough strength to kneel down and close the dead student's eyes.

"Cess…can you get the other one out of here?" Mark weakly asked, pointing with his eyes to the other student who nearly had his face torn off. Cessily nodded, de-constituting herself into her liquid form to increase her mobility. Mark helped the grieving girl to her feet. "…there…there wasn't anything you could have done." he slowly stated in an effort to calm her down, even though he himself wasn't even sure of the truth behind his words. All he knew was that it was too late to help her out.

"…you're bleeding…" the girl whispered faintly, the very moment she could regain some semblance of composure. "…does it hurt?" she then asked. Mark furrowed his brow, only then noticing how beautiful the girl in front of him was. She had short, blonde hair, much like that of the girl he loved. Her eyes were a soft tint of green, while her lips were a light shade of pink. There was something about her, a soft radiance, which seemed like it could soothe the longing that he felt within his broken soul. Mark struggled to find the words. This could be it. A person who could dig him out of the pit he dug himself into. That, or she could just be another mutant with potent pheromone-based abilities. Mark cleared his throat. "…you have to get to the danger room. Now."

"…" the girl stared at him for about two seconds before she finally nodded. Maybe it wasn't the best time in the world to admit that she's had a crush on him for almost two years now. That when she found out that he and Mindee became an item, she cried in her dorm room all night. That she knew crying over them was so stupid, and that he wasn't hers, and he should be happy that he's happy. But she just couldn't accept any of it. Now, now he was standing right in front of her. Her whole world was in disarray and the man of his dreams was barely a foot away. And he had just told her to leave.

"…Mark?"

"…?"

"M-my name's Lily. Lily Morrison."

"…yeah. I know you. We're classmates in philo."

"You…you really freaked out."

"…yeah."

"That time in class…"

"…yeah."

"You scared us."

"I'm sorry."

"…is it…was it about her? Mindee?"

"…"

"…I mean…"

"…you should really get to the Danger Room. Now."

* * *

**Danger Room/Twenty Minutes Later

* * *

**

Silence. A gigantic room full of teenagers and not one of them dared to make a sound. Perhaps, rightfully so. The last time that these kids were locked up in that very same room, their tempers were on flare. A punch was thrown. And in an instant, all hell broke loose. Lives were almost lost. Even then, no one had scrubbed the blood out of the metal floor. And the gap in the middle of the room, a line where no student of either side wanted to cross, represented an enmity which was clearly, still very much alive. Somebody coughed, but quickly muffled it before it could get louder. A group of boys were still glaring intensely at Julian. Cessily placed a hand on his shoulder, but he shrugged it off. Lily eyed the both of them for a short moment, before turning her attention elsewhere. To Mark. The only student who still able to walk who wasn't in the room with them. It bordered on the pathetic, really, the way she loved him even though he never talks to her, or the way he never even bothered to give her a second glance. Maybe it wasn't love. Who knew? All she did know is that he gave her a reason for waking up. For living. Literally. He must have forgotten by then, but she didn't. And every day since that day, she dreams of being in the perfect moment that could draw them together, to tell him how thankful she was. Was this the moment? She didn't know. "_He was bleeding…he could be hurt somewhere…or, what if he got hit in that- - that artery? That big one?" _Lily closed her eyes, trying to shut out the thoughts from shaking her even more. She wanted to find him. But she knew that the woman standing by the exit won't let her.

Shadowcat stood silently in front of the locked doors, keeping watch over the children in case any of them decide to do something incredibly stupid. In fact, she stared at them so hard that she was practically daring them to move. Not to mention that being in full X-Hear helped as well, so much so that she could have given the Wolverine a run for his money. None of them knew, that for all her posturing and stern expressions; that she was just as scared as the rest of them. Or perhaps even more so, since she knew that they looked onto her for direction. For guidance. Which begged the question, 'how do you tell a group of children that the world isn't about to end when all signs point to the fact that it would?' So mired as she in thought, of how, when and what to do next, that she did not even notice one of the students approach her. "…miss Pryde?" Bryan raised his hand in order to get the X-Woman's attention. He got it. Shadowcat raised her eyebrows, signaling to the young man that she was listening. Bryan swallowed a lump in his throat before he took a step forward. "What's happening outside?"

* * *

**S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier/-at the same time-

* * *

**

Director Maria Hill watched in horror from the bridge of the Helicarrier as reports of what looked like tornadoes of pure fire that tore through nearly every major city across the globe came her way. Even from the bridge, she could already see one of the great columns just past the horizon, reaching up to the flaring sky. And the fact that she knew the rest of the world was experiencing the same thing didn't help to improve her disposition. Everyone was still in shock. Hill, who was just as battle-hardened as her missing predecessor, was no exception. She knew war. She knew death. And in front of them, she never even flinched. But this? To watch helplessly as civilization itself was getting torn asunder; it was terrifying. Especially if you were one of the few people on the planet tasked to never let such a thing come to pass.

"Alkali Lake in Canada has been hit. The dam's gone…and the water's been evaporated." reported one of the crew members working a console.

"Okinawa, Japan, six blocks have been wiped clean off the planet." added a woman who had just received word from her communicator.

"The Savage Land was hit, but we don't have a specific location yet." then declared another crew member.

"…" Hill squinted her eyes as the names of the locations began to pile in. She knew there was something about them. Something they all had in common even though they were miles apart. A global secret that they have killed in order to protect.

"Director!" one of the helmsmen suddenly called, finally snapping out of his own shock. It didn't take long before the rest of the crew working the consoles began to start shouting as well, each one complaining about something short-circuiting the electrical systems. Images being displayed on holographic screens began to flicker under heavy static. The panic was building.

"People! Give me a sit-rep in five words or heads will start rolling!" Hill ordered, shouting at the top of her lungs to ensure that everybody got her attention. It worked.

"We're having an engine failure!" responded a station engineer, right as a visual schematic of the ship's core faded out of view. "We need to land!"

"Engine failure? That's impossible! This thing has more than thirty separate engines!" Hill shouted back in clear disbelief, only to be proven wrong as the airship suddenly lurched to the side, throwing everybody on board off balance. Three more consoles were now offline. Hill got back to her feet. "…okay then. Get us on the ground, now!"

"We're on top of a city!" protested one of the pilots. "Hell, we're forty-thousand feet in the air!"

"Do I look like I care? The whole freaking city can bill me! Now move!" Hill snapped as she held onto the railings for support.

"Beginning descent!" declared one of the men piloting the Helicarrier.

"Director!" a pilot stood up and pointed at the column of fire that towered in the horizon. There was something happening to it. Lightning began to shine from within the flaming citadel, almost as if there was a gargantuan battle unfolding within. "We're receiving massive electronic interference!" a crew member screamed as more and more of their systems began to go offline. The ground on their feet began to rumble. Everyone fell silent. The rumbling grew louder. Stronger. Hill opened her mouth but couldn't find the strength to scream. Electricity surged through the entire Helicarrier, tearing through the consoles and the machinery, sending pieces of broken glass and bright flying through the air like graffiti.

"What's happening?" screamed the Director as she attempted to regain her balance.

"We're losing energy!" hysterically shouted one of the station engineers. "We're being sucked dr- -" A falling plate of metal struck him on the back of his head, silencing him immediately. Not that he needed to finish his statement, as a new sight appeared before the terror-stricken officers of S.H.I.E.L.D. The electricity that had just, seconds ago, been bouncing off of their walls, was now being sucked into the flaming vortex miles away. So was the power of the entire city that cowered by its feet, as the electricity that brought light to a million homes were now but strings drawn to the heart of the conflagrated citadel.

"…" Hill bit her lip, cursing whomever decided to end the world during her first term as the head of a global, peace-keeping task force. And for all her arrogance, her pride, she still knew when her best wouldn't be good enough. She needed help. And she was going to find help. That of course, is assuming she survives the crash. She closed her eyes, and stood as straight as she could, even though her aircraft was now doing a nosedive into the middle of central park. Hill took a deep breath, and shouted at the top of her lungs. "Everybody! Brace yourselves!"

* * *

**Danbury, Connecticut/-thirty minutes later-

* * *

**

Logan shook his head. He was certain that his heart stopped for more than thirty seconds this time. It was the smell that struck him first. The smell of something burning. Of human skin melted away, and fresh tissue charred into coal. His hearing came next, made alive by the sound of a faint heartbeat underneath his own. At least he knew that Valerie was still alive. But just barely. That's why he had to move. "…" Logan knew that he was going to regret opening his eyes, but he really didn't have any choice. He's a superhero. It's what he's supposed to do. Open his eyes so that the rest of the world wouldn't have to. It's a miracle that he hasn't yet been struck blind.

"Oh God…" Logan's mouth hung open as he finally caught a glimpse of what had happened around him. All of the other patrons were dead; only their partial remains left behind after the blazing shockwave from the initial explosion hit. Most of the restaurant that they were in had already been blown away, leaving nothing but broken off segments from what remained of the walls. The ceiling was gone as well, giving the mutant a clear view of what had happened to the sky. Even the clouds were on fire. "…Jeannie…" Logan stared up at the burning sky. "…wherever you are, we could sure use some help…"

"…ow…" mumbled a baritone voice from beneath some of the debris. It was Henry. "…did the world just end?" he groggily asked, only to stop and stare wide-eyed at the devastation around him. From what he could see, a total of four blocks in each direction were reduced to black stains on the map. Everything was in a tint of yellow, thanks to the inferno that now inhabited the skies. Ash fell from the air like snow, neither he nor Logan aware that they were what remained of the people who were unceremoniously cremated. "Hey…there's a crater across the street…" he then absent-mindedly noted, as he began to clean what was left of his eyeglasses. "Oh…wait…" Henry took a good look at the broken frame in his paw before promptly throwing it away. A second later and he suddenly jumped up. "…Val?"

"Here. Alive. We need to get her to a hospital." Logan slowly responded.

"Huh. Logan?"

"What?"

"Your leg is missing."

"…" Logan raised his eyebrow and looked down to the spot where his leg once was. "Oh."

"This is all wrong…" Henry began to mutter, right as he sluggishly got up to both feet.

"No kidding." Logan sarcastically retorted while looking left and right for his lost appendage.

"What I meant was…Logan, look around. The blast radius. Whatever it is, it leveled everything for miles. We shouldn't have been able to survive."

"You'll have a' forgive me for being glad that you're wrong. Now if you don't mind, I could use a little- -" A bright light interrupted Logan before he could finish his own sentence. It was followed by what looked like a charred leg being unceremoniously dumped to the ground.

"Forgive me for not being able to mount the force field in time." then announced a deep, though apologetic voice. "I have found your leg."

"…" Logan fell silent at the sight of the figure who now landed gallantly in front of them. He wore a white, synthetic armor that had dark green greaves, which was the same design as his rather fitted helmet. Even his skin was a dark shade of green, though his eyes were stunningly white. Logan grabbed his leg and promptly reattached it to his thigh, before turning to the alien once more. "…you're a Kree."

"…I am called Khar-Lee." the alien then announced with a proud smile. Behind him, two more figures appeared, both of whom looked exceptionally over-powered. One of them, a bald man with violet skin and a hulking frame, had gigantic railguns to substitute for hands. The other was a rather slim creature that looked to have a body covered completely in black, and white hair that overflowed to cover its entire face, as well as most of its body. Khar-Lee lowered his head, and stared Logan in the eye.

"We have come to save your planet."

* * *

**Chapter 3 – End

* * *

**

**Next Chapter – Where the X-Men face a new challenge, and where some children decide to share more about themselves…

* * *

**

**Author's Note: Khar-Lee? What are the Kree doing here? And what does he mean by 'we'? And why is he named after me? Tune in for the next installment of 'Beloved'! Suggestions, Recommendations, violent reactions? Send them my way! **


	4. Homecoming

**Author's Note: Well, that certainly took long! Is anybody still there? Hmm, anyway, here is the latest chapter, enjoy!

* * *

**

**Previously on…**

**The Astonishing X-Men are a team of mutants who have dedicated their lives to protecting a world that hates and fears them. Led by Scott Summers, AKA CYCLOPS, and EMMA FROST, the X-Men have overcome threats not only to their race, but to the entire universe as well. Nonetheless, at their core, the X-Men are still teachers, mentors to thousands of children who wake up to find their world turned upside-down and inside-out. And in order to locate these children, the X-Men have under their use a small, helmet, CEREBRA, which increases telepathic awareness to near omniscient level. **

**Three night ago, a splinter cell born from the Government faction which fought off against Hitler's supernatural division, who called themselves the RING OF FATIMA, have come to the decision that world peace could only be achieved by sheer force of will. And that a device which could alter minds on a global scale wouldn't hurt either. That's why one of the Ring's members, LILAH GRAHAM, hatched an intricate plot which saw the X-Men out of the country, and their home utterly defenseless. Or so she thought. **

**The NEW X-MEN. Students who have learned the use and control of their uncanny powers under the best. Left alone, and with an entire army at their gates who want to take capture Cerebra, they do the only thing that the world has ever taught them to do. They fight back. With the STEPFORD CUCKOOS on the helm of Cerebra, it would seem that they could easily push the threat in the campus back. That was until Lilah Graham used her telepathy to heighten the violent urges of the students who didn't agree with the majority that Cerebra should not be used in order to force world peace. A riot broke out. Twelve students died, and much, much more were critically wounded. But more than that, the PHOENIX FORCE, which was hiding in MINDEE, one of the Stepford Cuckoos all along, re-emerged to devastating effect. Still, the small team led by Julian Keller, AKA HELLION, and MARK VASQUEZ, managed to beat Lilah and her soldiers. The X-Men finally come home to find the school in ruins, and the three sisters, who are now apparently hosts to the Phoenix, have disappeared. **

**Three days later, everyone in school is still on edge. The parents of one of the deceased students are headed to the school with a grudge to settle. And student BECKAH ADAMSON, one of the girls responsible for starting the riot in the school, gets brutally attacked by an unknown assailant inside her own room. Before she is found however, the world is suddenly torn asunder by massive columns of fire that wreak unspeakable destruction across the lands. It is the Phoenix. LOGAN, AKA WOLVERINE, and HENRY MCCOY, AKA THE BEAST, are surprised to learn that they have survived the wave of devastation that claimed the lives of everybody around them. It was only until the appearance of an imperial Super-Guardian that they realize why they are still alive…

* * *

**

**Chapter 4: "Homecoming"

* * *

**

It took a few moments before the dust could clear from the headmaster's office of the Xavier Institute for Higher Learning. Or more precisely, what was left of it. A large chunk of metal from an airplane that exploded high above the building tore a rather sizable wall through roof. The light from outside seemed to break through the swirling dirt, casting the particles aglow, like will o' wisps upon a pond. "…" Scott, the only person in the room who didn't even budge when the whole world went to hell, calmly turned to the broken sliding glass that led to the balcony. They were fortunate that the blast sent the shards outside, not in. It took the mutant leader a moment to focus beyond the haze, not really directed by sight, but rather, by the feeling of a powerful presence right outside. Helen was screaming for her life, while Dave didn't do much of anything to calm his wide down. Scott didn't care. "Show yourselves." He whispered, fairly certain that they were not alone. And he was right. Outside the balcony, there materialized the silhouettes of three figures, their backs to the burning light.

"Greetings, noble X-Men!" gallantly exclaimed the one who was in the middle. It wore silver armor that made him look like it came straight out of the medieval period, complete with a dark-violet cape that fluttered wildly against the solar winds. It's breastplate looked like a gigantic mask, showing the face of a man with thin eyes, sharp nose, and a wide, gaping mouth with teeth that looked absurdly real. Closer scrutiny however, would easily point that its armor wasn't metal at all, rather, a hard light construct that was faintly transparent. More striking however, was the fact that the armor didn't seem to have a wearer, save for a distinct outline of a corona around the space where its head should be. "I am Devian 'Xal!" it then announced, one arm outstretched proudly to the air. "I come in the name of Lilandra, Empress of the Great, Shi'ar Empire!"

"…you're Lilandra's Super-Guardians?" Scott skeptically asked, firmly keeping both feet his feet on the ground, not at all impressed that super-powered aliens were hovering just a few feet above his ruined balcony. Dave and Helen on the other hand, parents to a recently murdered student, looked like they were frightened to their wit's end. Hisako, who still cradled the body of her batch mate's corpse, desperately fought the urge to high-tail it out of there as well. She wasn't too fond of aliens, most especially since she barely escaped with her life in the two times that she had encountered them.

"We are here to protect you from the Dark One." Devian 'Xal purposefully stated, right as it pointed its fingers straight at Hisako. Silver energy began to materialize. "…and relieve you of further burdens."

"Don't!" Scott yelled while reaching for his sunglasses, only to find the world around him spin in a blur. He didn't even notice the beam of cosmic energy surge from Devian 'Xal's gauntlet. He didn't hear Hisako scream. A fraction of a second later, Scott finally got a hold of his Ruby Quartz' frame, only to notice that something was amiss. "…!" The headmaster quickly turned to find Hisako on her knees, watching the ashes of her schoolmate slide down her hands. Scott gritted his teeth. "What did you do?"

"Forgive me, leader of the X-Men." declared the woman who was hovering to Devian 'Xal's right. "We did not wish for this to turn into a needless conflict. My readings gathered that the girl's dead body was releasing a toxic cloud of invisible energy that would have surely proved lethal after prolonged exposure." she then explained robotically, perhaps due to the fact that she was nothing more than a bald android in a humanoid form. The plating on her person was of deep scarlet, though her eyes were a frightening shade of black and yellow. "I merely sped the flow of time for everything around you in order to safely facilitate the process disinfection."

"You people are insane!" Dave suddenly screamed, clearly unable to handle everything that was happening around them. "All of this…this is madness! No wonder people keep dying around you! Wherever you go, you bring nothing but - - but death! Death and- -and…puppies."

"…huh?" Scott raised his eyebrow at the broken man's odd choice of words, not to mention the sudden trance that forced him in a stiff, upright position. The same thing happened to his already silent wife.

"We have a puppy at home…" Dave absent-mindedly declared, as he and his wife began to turn to the door. "We should probably check up on her…."

"I do believe that that's a wonderful idea." added a woman's cold voice from the broken doorway. "Unfortunately, you'll have to walk home, since some of the passengers from the plane that blew up fell on top of your car. Quite a mess, horrific really. And please, don't feed the monkeys on your way down. They bite."

"Emma Frost." called the third of the Shi'ar Super-Guardians, a thin man that had some remarkable sharp features and a long green robe that covered his entire body, clearly impressed with the display of telepathy that the White Queen had effortlessly demonstrated. So much so that the glass dome holding his exposed brain bubbled in delight. Scott however, wasn't as pleased. And Emma knew it.

"_I had no choice, Scott. There are much bigger fish to fry than those two, overweight, repressed people. Besides, I only hastened the stages of acceptance that they were so leisurely taking a stroll through…" _Emma telepathically explained as he walked up to her lover.

"_You're saying they would have eventually forgiven us? You knew that?" _asked Scott, who shifted his weight as Emma grabbed a hold of his arm.

"_Of course not. I just needed something to make myself feel better when that tiny voice at the back of my head starts calling me a bad person. Now shush, we have more important matters at hand." _Emma responded, before turning her attention to the three Super-Guardians in front of her.

"You're going to have to excuse my 'not jumping for joy'…" the White Queen began. "…but didn't the Shi'ar disassociate itself with us X-Men months ago?"

"…" Scott nodded. "It came from the latest Araki himself, right after Charles and Lilandra got their marriage annulled."

"We understand your suspicions." Devian 'Xal immediately responded. "The intergalactic courts have agreed, X-Men, that should this situation get out of hand, then the Dark One would no doubt threaten not only your planet, but the rest of the universe as well. Our predecessors have always respected you, as great warriors who equaled some of the mightiest among the cosmos. We have come to honor this respect, X-Men, one more time."

"…you three claim to be here for our protection." she casually noted, eyeing the extraterrestrials suspiciously with sapphire eyes. "Prove it. Turn off your mind shields so I can tell for sure."

"We cannot comply to such a request." Devian 'Xal calmly answered. "In our minds are locked the secrets of the galaxies. We have seen things that are far too complex for the human mind to comprehend. Opening our knowledge to- -"

"Bored now." the White Queen interrupted, her eyes glowing with light blue energy, ready to strike at the aliens before her. Scott pulled her back before anything could go further out of hand.

"That was a very smart thing to do." stated the alien with the exposed brain. "We're not here to look for trouble, X-Men…but we will be forced to use any means necessary in order to ensure your protection."

"Really? I bet the next thing you'll say is that you have a wonderful exit strategy planned for Iraq…" Emma sarcastically quipped from behind Scott.

"Say what you will, human." the cyborg interrupted. "Your connection with the Dark One has put you all in peril. I know you do not believe us, but what we say is true. Armageddon will at last unfold. We are here to see you safely through. All of you."

"…?" Emma furrowed her brows as she felt the hum of generators cutting through the sky. She could hear the familiar heartbeats that were pounding faster than the beat of the drum. She could feel their thoughts, twisted every which way with dread and anxiousness. Three X-Jets carrying three teams of X-Men. It was time for a homecoming that none of them would ever forget.

* * *

**Danger Room/11:30

* * *

**

"_Alerting all residents of the Xavier Institute. I am called Vi'Raal" _The students all exchanged nervous glances at the sound of the unfamiliar voice rummaging through their head. Blindfold pressed her hand against her cheek, muttering intelligibly. Julian let out a soft sigh, relived that the attention wasn't fixed on him anymore. Katherine, who herself had manifested a certain degree of resistance to telepathic intrusion, found herself surprised that somebody could so easily barge into her mind. Especially as it was the voice of somebody she did not recognize. However, before she could probe much deeper into the situation, she felt a warm hand, tugging gently on hers. It was one of the new students, a young girl with wide, grey eyes and bones protruding from the top of her head. Katherine bit her lip, and gave the child a reassuring smile. "_Please…" _the voice continued, obviously picking up the negative feelings that the she and the children were harboring. "…_we Super-Guardians mean none of you any harm."

* * *

_

**Front Lawn/-at the same time-

* * *

**

"_We have traveled far in the name of the Great Empress, and we bring with us the strength to live through this unholy hour…" _Alex Summers, Scott's younger brother, frowned to himself at the sound of the embarrassing dialogue that the alien was belting out. Beside him sat Lorna Dane, codenamed Polaris, mistress of both magnetism and odd hair color, who kept her eyes locked on the Super-Guardian escort on the other side of the X-Jet's windshield. Even Bobby Drake, known better as Iceman for obvious reasons, as well as Kurt Wagner, the Nightcrawler, were far too distressed to even think of a punch line for the situation. Gambit and Rogue, who sat farthest from the front, weren't keen on any verbose exposition either. "…_and to be absolutely certain that everything goes as smoothly as possible…"

* * *

_

**Over the Dormitory Wing/11:32

* * *

**

"…_we Super-Guardians have gathered every X-Man who has been in contact with the Dark One." _Rachel Grey exchanged a nervous glance with an equally unnerved Ororo Munroe, who was handling the wheel of their aircraft. They were two of the most powerful mutants on the face of the planet, able to wield energies that mortal man could only begin to dream of. Yet now, in the face of the calamity at hand, both of them felt as helpless as any other. It was humbling, to say the least. Very humbling. Taking up the seats behind the women were Lucas Bishop, detective and X-Man, as well as Sage, who was one of the more mysterious members of Charles' personal cadre. They both listened intently to the words in their heads, uneasy at how a telepath could bypass both the power absorption and psychic defense." _She has gone insane. Driven by the need to transcend what she already is."

* * *

_

**Hangar/-at the same time-

* * *

**

"_We believe that she now seeks to ruin that which has mattered to her the most. To destroy the humanity that has grounded her since time immemorial. To sever the bonds of love and conscience, which have been instrumental in preventing her from truly becoming." _The exhaust from the tired engines hissed into steam, as the ramp at the belly of the X-Jet lowered to the ground. Professor Charles Xavier took a deep breath. It has been a very, very long time - - from the death of five-thousand New Yorkers, the beloved heroine Jean Grey, as well as the man who was the cause of it all, to the hardship he had faced in attempting to rebuild what was once the mutant paradise of Genosha. He was only too proud to admit that he longed to be back to the house he built. To the long memories and forgotten years. Yet for all the time he has since spent in 'sabbatical', it was not the air of nostalgia that caught his attention. Neither was it the invasion of aliens who seemed to resolute to protect them from the genocidal Phoenix Force. No. Rather, it was a presence in the hangar. One so strong that Charles originally assumed it to be a Super-Guardian tasked to escort him wherever they planned to keep him. But no. This one was different. This one was lonely.

"…shouldn't all the students be somewhere safe by now?" Charles asked rhetorically to the direction of the strong mutant signature. It took a few moments before the professor gained a response. First by the sound of shifting weight, and then soon by a long, mournful sigh. It was Mark. He sat alone beneath a metal bridge, half his body obscured by shadows cast. His sleeve was torn off and used as a make-shift bandage to stop the bleeding from his wounded arm. The rest of his brown shirt was soaked in blood. His hands were out of view, as they were tucked under his arms.

"You're the professor." Mark wearily greeted, though in no way, shape or form showing that he actually cared. "…I haven't seen you since that thing with Magneto in Manhattan."

"I was busy…rebuilding." Charles responded, ignoring the Super-Guardian that landed after him. "…might I ask why you're sitting in a corner, drenched in blood?"

"…things got crazy down here. I mean… bad crazy."

"I'm sorry."

"…are you poking around in my head, professor?"

"I…yes. Forgive me, but my curiosity got the better of me. You do know that you are immune to anything psychic that's more than simple telepathic conversation?"

"…" Mark licked his lips. He didn't know how it happened, but he knew why. It was two months ago, when his best friend Derrick, who didn't know that he was actually the son of a long-time X-Men villain, was used as a transmitter to literally make everybody go insane. And in order to prevent anything from going too far out of hand, Derrick telepathically forced him to use his ability to rend soul from flesh in order to stop the psychic poison that was forcing the X-Men to kill each other. Derrick died instantly, but for Mark, it was another story. In the three seconds where Derrick was severed from his soul, Mark felt his best friend's every memory and emotion rush into him with the force of a locomotive. Those three seconds lasted forever.

And since then, Mark found himself farther and farther away from the reach of any telepath in the school. Away from those seeking to know how he felt or what he thought without his permission. And most especially, away from those who could force him to use his powers without him knowing. Until one day, his powers evolved, and gave him what he desired the most. Silence. The only person he ever let in since then, the person he truly loved, was now gone. And it hurt like a bitch. Perhaps that was why he could now feel his emotions, his vulnerability, his pain, slowly seeping away. It was his mutation. To hide under a veil of energy that could suck the soul dry of anyone who dared breach it.

"…is there something you want to talk about?" Charles asked, sensing the gravity that the child possessed. Mark did not respond. Charles narrowed his eyes. "Were you crying?"

"Wow, no wonder they call you the greatest mind on the planet." Mark sarcastically responded, knowing full well that the professor noticed the redness around his tired eyes.

"There is no more time for this dialogue." interrupted the Super-Guardian who was escorting the professor. "You are needed elsewhere, Charles Xavier."

"…" Charles half-turned at the reptilian, humanoid creature, before once again turning to the obviously distraught young man in the shadows. "Would you like to come along, son?" he politely asked as he extended his hand. Mark didn't budge. "We really should have that arm taken care of." the professor further urged. "It could get infected." Mark took a deep breath, and then wearily got up. It was only then that the professor noticed. There was blood on his hands. Lots of it. Charles' eyes widened.

"Child, what have you done?"

* * *

**Danger Roon/11:33

* * *

**

Shadowcat turned the moment she heard the furious knocking on the Danger Room doors. "Everyone. Stay together." she immediately instructed, earning no protestation whatsoever from any of the students. Without waiting any further, Shadowcat phased the upper half of her body through the locked doors. Julian leaned to the side, ready to whisper something in Bryan's ear, only to find himself cut off from speech at the sight of the Shadowcat suddenly pulling herself back, dragging the body of a profusely bleeding student inside the room with her. "I need a healer!" the X-Man shouted as she laid the student to the floor. Blood ran down his mouth like as if it were an open faucet. Some of the other students turned away from the grisly sight. "Elixir! Get me Elixir!"

"I'm here!" Josh yelled as he pushed through the other students. "It's Kyle." Shadowcat declared, referring to the student who was bleeding out in her hands. "It's his tongue. Somebody ripped it out."

"…" Josh stood and stared at his batch mate in mute shock for the first few seconds. It just wouldn't register yet, seeing someone you knew, bleeding to death by your feet. A quick tug on his shirt snapped him back to reality. "Help. Him." Shadowcat ordered through grit teeth, forcing the young man to only stammer a 'yes' in response. Dropping to his knees, Josh placed his hands over the student's mouth. "It's gonna' be okay, Kyle. We're gonna' make it right…just stay with me, okay?"

"Okay, okay." Shadowcat slowly stood back as she saw the pain slowly washing away from the student's face. The same look of relief also began to appear on the other students' faces. Good. Shadowcat raised her hand. "I need a volunteer, someone watch over the others, make sure everyone stays put."

"…" Nobody budged. Julian exchanged glances with both Bryan and Kevin, almost as if to ask if they would back him up should he raise his hand. Cessily noticed this, and sternly shook her head.

"Miss Pryde!" suddenly volunteered one of the girls. It was Lily. Shadowcat nodded. "The first kid who starts trouble, gets his report card shoved up his colon. Literally. Understand?" the X-Man then asked, to a resounding 'yes ma'am'. Lily blew out the air from her mouth, and stepped forward.

* * *

**Main Lobby/11:35

* * *

**

Scott took a good long look around the large, crowded room that he was in. A room full of friends. No, they were much more than that. They were family. He only wished that they were there under better circumstances. Years ago, the X-Men, expanding continuously, were divided into various strike forces, designed to deal with various aspects of society. And no matter how much their rosters have changed over the years, no one could ever take away the bond that was between each and every one of them. Of course, there were a few who didn't get along. Rachel Grey, formerly Grey-Summers, knitted her brows at the sight of the White Queen who stood by Scott's side. There was a time when it was her mother, Jean, who gave him strength. Love. Theirs was supposed to be an eternal bond. One of absolute passion that would outlive the oldest star. That's what she thought. "…" Rachel shook her head, and returned her attention to the bigger issue at hand.

There were six Super-Guardians hovering above the gathered X-Men, watching them like a jury passing silent condemnation. Each one looked like they had in them the capacity to obliterate an entire city in the span of an hour. All of them wore psychic shields potent enough to harm any telepath foolish enough to venture within their field. There were two Super-Guardians on each of the room's four corners, displaying a level of training that only meant one thing. They had a master. One who must have earned the right to lead these cosmic beings into glorious battle. And from the looks of things, this leader was about to make his, or her, presence known. The sound of faint static soon filled the air, catching the X-Men's collective attention. The sound soon turned into a whiz, much like how a sliding door opens. Everyone looked up, just in time to find the holographic image of the great Shi'ar Empress, Lilandra.

"_Hear me X-Men."_ she greeted with a mournful voice, as static occasionally disrupted both the sound and image of her holographic representation. "_I know that all I ever seem to bring is bad news…but unfortunately, that's all we have at the moment. The Phalkon…the Phoenix is attempting to become something which it has no right of being. Alive. Truly alive." _

"That's insane." Peter interrupted. Rachel nodded. "The Phoenix is life." she then added. "It doesn't make sense for life incarnate to want to be alive."

"_Sense is mortal, children." _Lilandra calmly retorted. "_For eons, all the myths and all the legends have spoke of deities wishing for the chance to relieve themselves of the burdens of godhood. The Phoenix, it would seem, is no different from the rest of these entities…" _

"…" Lorna raised her head. "So you mean to tell us that…for some reason, the Phoenix Force has decided to forsake godhood? That is obscene. Why would anyone - - or anything - - choose to do that? I mean…"

"_To be a god is to be perfect, Lorna Dane." _came the Empress' response. "_And when one has been granted perfection, then what is there left to do?" _

"Wait, wait - - what you're saying… how is it even possible?" interrupted Lucas Bishop, who had Sage standing silent beside him." How do you know all this?"

"_Because it nearly happened before. We have learned that…long ago, a cosmic being whose sole purpose in life was to observe the course of time, came upon a meeting between two mighty entities. One of them, obviously, was the Phoenix…while the other was a being which was just as feared…the anti-creator…Galactus. I'm sure you've heard of him." _

"Yeah, he's the guy with a tuning fork for a head." Bobby answered.

"…_it is when these two forces met, that the Galactus revealed what his heralds have told him. That something…a great immensity…managed to siphon the entire life force of a hundred future generations. And where did all this untapped potential go?" _

"…no…" Rachel pressed her hand against her mouth, a memory within her stirring at the sound of Lilandra's words.

"_The Phoenix craved for something more than existence. And she found it. She took the core of creation, and fashioned for herself a consciousness that would survive the secrets of the universe. She never knew how great the price would be." _

"But she didn't mean it!" Rachel then protested, earning the attention of the entire room. "She - - she gave it away! When she found out, she gave it away! She promised that she'd never do it again!"

"_Yes. Well, that was before she went insane." _Lilandra coldly retorted. Emma raised her eyebrow. "And whose fault was that again?" the White Queen then asked. "Correct me if I'm wrong - - though I highly doubt it to be the case - - but didn't some of your militia stick a cosmic catheter in the bird's fiery behind and force her to go mad?"

"_Those soldiers' actions were never sanctioned by the Empire, Emma Frost." _The Empress then answered. Scott kept silent. "_And as much as I am shamed to admit that I am, in part, responsible for this tragedy…there is nothing more I can do…the Phoenix must be stopped. She wants to get back what she had once forsaken… but now, now she wants to take the extra step. She wants to be mortal. Free from the shackles of perfection. And to do so, she will suck the life of every possible future in the galaxy..."

* * *

_

**S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier/11:40

* * *

**

Orange light spilled through the cracked, glass dome that covered ship's massive bridge. Everything else was kept in dark, save for the patch of illumination that came from the blazing sky. In the middle of it was Director Hill, who had only begun to move. "…somebody…give me a sit rep…" she dazedly whispered, as she attempted to push herself off of the floor. No one answered. "_Keep it together." _Hill silently ordered herself, shaking off the pain that racked her body. After all, shattered ribs and a dislocated shoulder were the least of her problems.

The systems have all been fried. Torn-off wires and circuitry, sucked dry of energy, hung from the walls like the vines from dead trees. Blood stained the floor. "Goddamn…" Hill quickly grabbed the mouthpiece that was on the floor, and raised it to her lips. "Mr. President?" she immediately called, though she was fairly certain that there would be no answer. "Mr. President, do you copy?" she asked once again. No harm in trying. "Shit." Hill dropped the mouthpiece, and began to glance left and right, hoping for signs that she wasn't the only one left moving. She could hear the faint sound of painful groans coming from every direction. Signs of life.

"…!" Hill took a deep breath, and gathering her strength, got back to both feet. Right in time for a green, holographic screen to appear in front of her. It was Special Agent Brand.

"_Director." _Brand coldly greeted. Hill raised an eyebrow. "_It would seem that we have some bad news."

* * *

_

**Breakworld/Unknown

* * *

**

Blue fire flickered wildly, crowned on steel torches which were the only sources of light for the long, gray passage. The sound of metal boots echoed across the lifeless hall, thumping across a red carpet that was woven from thread drenched with the blood of the fallen. At the end of the hall were a massive set of double-doors, engraved with the figures of leaders long gone. Two servants waited patiently by the double-doors, bowing their heads as the three, robed wise men drew closer to where they stood. Even from there, the three of them could already hear the sound of mighty furor from beyond the closed doors; a mindless cacophony of grunts and growls that only intensified as the two servants pulled on the chrome handles. Powerful gusts of wind came blowing in, howling angrily as the three wise men stepped onto the black spire's massive balcony. From there, high above where the red sky seemed as dense as blood, the three proudly smiled at the sight below them. A sea of their greatest, most bloodthirsty warriors, carrying swords, and spears, and axes and banners; all of them chanting to the drums of intergalactic war.

* * *

**Chapter – End **

**Next Chapter – ? **

**Author's Note: Well, there was that! Drop me a line and tell me what you think! Cheerio! J**


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